FOXNews.com: MURDER TRIAL: Detective Says Zimmerman Never Changed His Story

Changes are afoot at Blogtrottr! By popular request, we're bringing in paid plans with some cool new features (and more on the way). You can read all about it in our blog post.

FOXNews.com FOX News Channel - We Report. You Decide. // via fulltextrssfeed.com

MURDER TRIAL: Detective Says Zimmerman Never Changed His Story Jul 2nd 2013, 14:41 The lead police detective who investigated the fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin in central Florida last year returned to the witness stand Tuesday in the murder trial of George Zimmerman, after testifying Monday that he believed Zimmerman's story after his attempt to bluff the suspect failed. Sanford Police Det. Christopher Serino, who initially wanted to charge Zimmerman with manslaughter but was overruled, said under cross examination by Zimmerman defense attorney Mark O'Mara that Zimmerman's story remained consistent and that the volunteer neighborhood watchman was cooperative throughout the investigation. He said he considered Zimmerman's injuries to be minor, but found nothing to prompt him to doubt the 29-year-old's story, that we shot Martin in self-defense as he was being beaten. On cross examination, Prosecutor Bernie de la Rionda emphasized profane language Zimmerman used on a 911 call as he observed Martin walking through the gated community, and asked Serino if Zimmerman's use of "a--holes" and "f---ing punks" indicated Zimmerman might have been profiling and following Martin. Serino testified Monday that at first he did not believe Zimmerman's story, but when he told Zimmerman the fatal, Febraury, 2012 encounter may have been caught on video, Zimmerman's response of "Thank God" changed his mind, Serino said. Click here for full coverage of the George Zimmerman Trial Serino's Monday testimony became the latest prosecution witness to appear to do more harm than good to the state's case, recalling a somber conversation that touched on Zimmerman's faith and the fear he said he felt when Martin told him "You're going to die tonight." On Tuesday, De La Rionda sought to mitigate the damage done by Serino's Monday testimony, getting the detective to concede that, as a neighborhood watch volunteer, Zimmerman would know there were no surveillance cameras. And, he said, Zimmerman would have known if Martin had taped the encounter on his cellphone. "So he basically knew you were bluffing?" De La Rionda said, before an objection from the defense was sustained. Zimmerman could get life in prison if convicted of second-degree murder. The state argued during its opening statement that Zimmerman profiled and followed Martin in his truck and called a police dispatch number before he and the teen got into a fight. Over the first five days of testimony, jurors heard 911 calls from neighbors that included cries for help and the fatal gunshot. Zimmerman's attorneys are adamant that he is the one screaming on the recordings, while Martin's parents have said it's their son. Jurors also listened to more than six hours of testimony from Martin's friend Rachel Jeantel, who testified that she was talking on the phone with the teen as the fight started. She testified that Martin told her he was being followed by "a creepy-ass cracker." But it was her testy cross-examination exchanges with defense attorney Don West that commanded the most attention. West attacked inconsistencies in multiple statements she gave attorneys and law enforcement officials about what she heard, including whether she heard Martin say "Get off! Get off!" There also was conflicting testimony from neighbors that witnessed parts of the struggle between Martin and Zimmerman. Some said it appeared the larger Zimmerman was straddling Martin, but neighbor Jonathan Good said it appeared Martin was on top. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed, or manage all your subscriptions